"What happens today in education profoundly influences the lives of individuals and the health of whole communities for decades to come. Yet, educational decision-making is mostly dealing with pressing immediate issues or seeking more efficient ways of maintaining established practice, rather than about shaping the long term."31
Apart from the interest and support of the family, there is no more important factor in a good education than the teacher, especially the enthusiastic teacher. Indeed the teaching profession is, or at least should be, regarded as one of the most important and prestigious in our society. It is obvious that, whatever a student's innate abilities may be, the major influences on his/her education and life choices, including professional choices, are the support and engagement of their family and the enthusiasm of their teachers. Aspirational families and societies place their highest value on, and their major investments in, education, as their passport to the future. However, sadly, it appears that significant sections of our community do not accept this fact, or at least do not support their children in their education. The 2006 New Zealand draft curriculum clearly recognises that, “Quality education is a shared responsibility of the state, the community, the family and the individual.” Culture is everything. More needs to be done to develop an educationally-committed culture in Queensland, and to promote the importance of education for individual and community advancement.
The status of the teaching profession and perceptions of the general community have considerable impact on the importance placed on education in Queensland and indeed Australia. There is little doubt that teachers value teaching and their profession, but one must question if the community similarly values it. In surveying early career teachers, Skilbeck et al.17 revealed that 63% of primary and 48% of secondary teachers in the early phases of their careers expected recognition from the community for their role.
Through the State’s Education and Training Reforms for the Future (ETRF) agenda, Queensland schools are already engaging with parents, industry, universities and the wider community to share the responsibility for education. Of particular note are the partnerships established between schools and industry in Gladstone, Mt Isa and Stanthorpe, to name a few. But more could be done.
It appears self-evident that an important factor in the educational achievement of students is the strong interest and support of their family and community. Sadly, such interest and support is not always present. This support is particularly important for children that may be located in disadvantaged communities, as education is the key to their emancipation and opportunities. It is therefore important to do what we can to improve this support and to have all of our parents and carers appreciate that, along with the nurture of emotional and physical well-being, a good education is the most important life gift that our children can receive.
A focus of the Smart State Strategy8 relates to ensuring that ‘people have the skills and knowledge to exercise choice about what they do and how they choose to engage in the economy/society’. This can be achieved at the school level if well-informed advice, managed by suitable experts, is provided to students and their parents/carers in order for informed choices to be made. Currently, Guidance Officers, teachers and various other educators are required to provide advice and guidance to students and their parents/carers regarding further education and career pathways in addition to the other responsibilities that they have. As the options for students are undergoing continual change, it would be preferable to have suitably qualified career advisors available to provide advice at appropriate points across the years of schooling. Students should be exposed from an early age to potential careers through interactions in the wider school community and appropriate, relevant information.
At the same time, industries of all kinds need to become more involved in ensuring that education providers are aware of their needs and the opportunities that they can provide to support education of Queensland students. Commentaries on desirable education for a knowledge economy2,32-34 place an emphasis on, the need for and importance of, enduring partnerships between schools, industry, community, business and researchers in order to create career pathways for students.
Finally, places of learning must be vibrant, innovative, exciting and motivating. Industry and the wider community need to actively engage with students and schools, to provide role models and glimpses into exciting worlds beyond the classroom, particularly those that feed into advanced industries and will drive the development of the Smart State.
Last reviewed 31 January 2007